Snap shackle



Sept. 19, 1967 J. MICHAEL 3,341,907

SNAP SHACKLE Filed Oct. 14, 1965 I 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 37 //V VE/V 70/? 33JAMES MICHAEL Sept. 19, 1967 J. MICHAEL 3,341,907

SNAP SHACKLE Filed Oct. 14, 1965 9 Sheets-Sheet INVENTOI? JAMES MICHAEL3) ATTORNEY United States Patent O 3,341,907 SNAP SHACKLE James Michael,107 Golden Gate Ave., Belvedere, Calif. 94920 Filed Oct. 14, 1965, Ser.No. 496,032 11 Claims. (Cl. 24-241) This invention relates toimprovements in snapshackles and in particular to snapshackles adaptedfor use on sailing vessels or other like situations where it isimportant for the shackle to avoid entanglement with other rigging orobjects lying in the path of its movement in use, and where it isimportant that the snapshackle be such that a sailor can disconnect itfrom one sail and connect it to another sail in a minimum of time andwithout any fumbling or lost motions.

One important use for the snapshackle of this invention is in therunning rigging of a sailing vessel used to trim the jib sail to itsproper position in relation to the boats course and the winds direction.The jib sheet (rope to the layman) comprises two separate lines, eachconnected to the clew of the sail by its own snapshackle. One sheetpasses from the sail along the starboard deck back to the cockpit andthe other along the port deck. The snapshackles are secured to the clewof the sail. In changing from a starboard tack to a port tack the jibsail needs to be shifted to a position where it was controlled by theport sheet to where it is controlled by the starboard sheet. This meansthe sail, the snapshackles and the forward ends of the two sheets mustmove across the vessel in front of the mast. In this area there isstanding rigging, the mast, and usually numerous other objects on whichthe snapshackles could hang up. This has been the situation for years inthis art and the snagging of a shackle will delay completion of the tackuntil a sailor frees the snagged parts. This is one of the problems towhich the present invention is directed.

One object of this invention is therefore to' construct the severalparts of the snapshackle so that each part cooperates with the otherparts to do the job and yet be out of the way so the shackle will slideover any obstructing rigging, mast or the like.

Another problem solved by this invention relates to the changing ofsails during racing. In addition to the jib sail, the same jib sheetsare used with a Genoa jib, a balloon jib, or a spinnaker. A quick changefrom one sail to another is essential in racing where seconds count. Theproblem is accentuated by the fact that the sail change frequently comesduring the interval that the vessel is shifting position while changingtack or coming about. The sailor in the precarious position on theforward deck is handicapped if he has to handle loose or unwieldlyshackles in changing the sails.

To solve this problem one of the objects of the present invention is toso position the shackle body, the hub, the splice to the sheet, and thehook actuating means that the parts just named are arranged as an easilygrasped integral unit for the sailor to hold in the palm of his lefthand While he unhooks one sail and connects to the'clew in the new sail.

Another object of the invention is the provision of novel hook releasemeans, which can also function as a delicately set trip latch to holdthe locking pin in retracted position, but will automatically release itwhen the hook vibrates the shackle when the hook is slammed against theface on the hub.

Other advantages and objects will 'be apparent from the drawings inwhich,

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective showing the snapshackle with a linespliced to the hub on the frame body-and with the hook -in closedposition;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the device with the jib sheet spliced to thehub and the side of the frame cut away to show the spring, the lockingpin and the lifting lever for retracting the pin;

FIG. 3 is a similar view with the sheet spliced to the hub and with thehook in opened position ready to engage a'fitting in the clew of thesail. The sailors hand is sketched in dotted lines to show an importantfeature to be explained later;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the device showing the pull lever nestedinside the frame;

FIG. 5 is a plan View of the frame;

FIG. 6 is a bottom view of the frame;

FIG. 7 is a top View of the frame;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of the locking pin retraction lever in thefully raised latched position; and

FIG. 9 is a view of the underside of the pin retraction lever.

Where the word line is used in this patent, it is meant to include theuse of wire or any other material secured to the snapshackle.

Referring now to the drawings it will be seen that the 'snapshackle isadapted for use on sailing vessels. The parts are designed to interposea minimum of interference with other rigging as the shackle travels fromside to side with the flapping clew of the jib sail as the vesselchanges tack. Also the parts are designed so that when the sheet isspliced to the hub on the frame the splice and the frame form a compactunit which nestles firmly in the hand of the sailor as he opens andcloses the shackle when changing sails.

The numeral 10 denotes the frame body which has a hub 11 at one end. Thehub is recessed preferably with its surface 12 shaped to receive a line13 of the correct diameter for the jib sheet on a selected size ofvessel. The hub 11 has the flanges 14 and 15 which serve to hold thespliced line 13 in place even when the hook is open. The hub also holdsthe splice in firm alignment with the body 10. This gives an importantassist to the sail-or using the device in that the splice and the body10 tend to behave as one unit which nestles in the hand while the sailoris opening the latch arm 16 to release the clew of one sail and tosecure the latch arm 16 to the clew of another sail.

The end of the frame 10 near the flange 14 in the hub 11 is faired sothat the curved surface 17 merges with the curved surface of the line 13thereby avoiding any sharp corners or edges that could hang up onanother piece of rigging.

The end of the hub 11 has the mating face 19 which, as shown in FIG. 6,has an oval or elliptical shape. The midsection 20 of the hub 11 aroundwhich the sheet 13 is spliced also has an elliptical oval'shape. It willbe seen in FIGS. 5 and 6 that the hub 11 is longer than it is wide withthe long dimension extending lengthwise of the whole frame body 10. Thiselliptical shape cooperates with the line 13 spliced on the hub 11 tocause the splice 21 and the body 10 to tend to stay in axial alignment.In other Words, the elliptical shape is designed to hold the shackle in'place and to prevent the hub from slipping out of the splice'in theline. How this assembly is held easily in the sailors left hand isillustrated in FIG. 3 and will be explained later in this description.

On the end of the frame 10, opposite to the hub 11 but adjacent to itsflange 14 is a pivot bearing 21 with its axis lying normal to the axisof the hub 11. In this bearing is mounted the hook 16 :by means of thepin 22. The other end of the hook 16 has an elliptical face 23 whichmatches and mates with the elliptical face 19 on hub 11. The end 24 ofthe hook 16 is rounded and tapered so that it merges into the curvedsurface of the line 13 at 25, thereby avoiding any sharp corners oredges that could hang up on another piece of rigging.

The hook 16 is formed in relation to the body to have its holdingportion 26 substantially in line with the midsection 20 of the hub 11and located close to the pivot 22. This compactness and alignmentacilitates opening and closing of the hook on the clew of the sail whilethe splice and body 10 are held in the left hand as shown in FIG. 3.

The locking pin 27 fits slidably in a bore 28 in the hub 11. This boreextends in a plane which coincides with the middle longitudinal axis ofthe body 10 and hub 11. This bore also extends through the hub 11 in theaforesaid plane, at an angle to the face of the hub. The bore slopesfrom the face 19 in the direction of the pivot bearing 21. From the face23 of the hook 16 there is a bore 29 which is aligned with the bore 28in the hub 11. The locking pin 27 slides in those aligned bores 28 and29.

The bore 28 in the hub 11 has a shoulder 30 and a reduced bore 31 at itsend opposite the face 19. The locking pin 27 has a shoulder 32 andreduced shank 33 to slidably fit in the bore 31. Between the shoulders30 and 32 is fitted a light coil spring 34 which functions to yieldablyhold the locking pin projecting beyond the face 19 of the hub 11.

By sloping the bore 28 and the pin 27 the effect, as to the hook 16 whenthe pin 27 is in the bore 29 of the hook, is for the pin to lock thehook 16 in position with sufficient holding power to resist any pull puton the hook 16. The only way in practical use for the hook 16 to beopened is for the pin 27 to be retracted into the hub 11.

To accomplish this retraction of the pin 27 a pulling lever 35 ispivoted at 36 to the reduced end 37 of the locking pin 27. The side ofthe body 10 has a longitudinal recess at 38 to provide walls 39 and 40which surround the small bore and provide the shielded recess 38. Thelever 35 and its two ends 41, 41 are protected from snagging on anyrigging while changing tack. The end 41 is scooped out to provide aneasy finger lifting recess 42. The under side of the lever 35 shown inFIG. 9 is also perforated or recessed at 43 so the lever 35 and the end37 of the locking pin can assume the cooked position shown in FIG. 8.The forces are such in this position that the parts mentioned will holdthis position until the shackle is jarred or a tilting pressure isapplied on the end 41.

It will be noted that when the snapshackle and splice are held in theleft hand as shown in FIG. 3 the elliptical hub 11 tends to hold thesplice 21 and the body 10 in alignment and firmly in the sailors hand.With the thumb of the right hand the sailor lifts on the cavity 42 ofthe lever 35 and withdraws the locking pin 27 from the bore 29 in thehook 16. This allows the hook 16 to swing open to release the clew of asail shown in dotted lines in FIG. 3. Having a firm grip with the lefthand on the shackle and splice 21 the sailors right hand is free tobring the clew of the new sail onto the hook and to close the hook.

If the lever 35 remains cooked in the position of FIG. 8 the vibration,imparted to the shackle body 10 by the hook face 23 striking the face 19of the hub, will release the lever 35 and the spring 34 will project thelocking pin 27 into the aligned bore 29 of the hook. If the lever 35 isin the down position shown in FIG. 2 the face 23 of the hook will slideon the corner of the pin 27 and will cam it back into its bore 28 in thehub 11. When the hook face 23 contacts the mating face 19 of the hub 11,the bore holes 28 and 29 will be aligned and the locking pin will beprojected up into the bore 29 to lock the parts together.

In complying with the statute in describing a preferred form of theinvention, it is not intended thereby to limit the invention to this oneform, because other manufacturers may still incorporate principles ofthe invention while making a snapshackle that may appear different tothe eye.

What I claim is:

1. In a snapshackle the combination of an elongated body frame;

a flanged hub at one end of said frame,

adapted to have a line spliced thereon, said flanged hub having a faceat its unsupported end;

a hook pivoted to the other end of said frame, said hook having a faceto mate with the face on said hub; and

a locking pin slidable in a bore in said hub and retractable therein toa position below the face on said hub;

said hook having a bore which aligns with said pin bore when the matingfaces are adjacent each other.

2. The device of claim 1 in which said hub is of an ellipticalcross-section with the major axis extending in the direction of the bodyframe, whereby the line spliced to said hub will tend to hold the bodyframe and the line in alignment.

3. The device of claim 1 in which there is pivoted to the end of saidlocking pin, a lever adapted to lay in a recess in said body frame andto fulcrum on one end in said recess to retract said locking pin whenlifting force is applied at the opposite end of said lever.

4. The device of claim 3 in which the lifting lever is adapted toembrace said locking pin and thereby to permit said lifting lever, whenraised, to move its fulcrum point in close enough to said locking pin tohold and to latch the latter in its retracted position until thefulcruming end of said lifting lever is moved away from said lockingpin.

5. In a snapshackle adapted for use on sailing vessels and which willinterpose a minimum of interference with other rigging as it is movedfrom side to side by the clew of the sail as the boat changes tack, thecombination of a frame body, having a flanged hub formed in said body atone end crosswise of the longitudinal axis of the frame;

said hub being adapted to firmly hold to the frame a splice in the endof a line;

said frame body being faired in to one edge of the hub and having amating face on the other edge of the hub;

a pivot bearing formed at the other end of said frame body adjacent saidhub with its axis lying normal to the axis of said hub;

a hook pivoted to said frame body in the aforementioned bearing,

said hook having at its free end a face adapted to mate with theaforementioned mating face on said hub with the end of said hook fairedinto the edge of said hub;

said hook having adjacent to its pivot portion, and substantially inline with said flanged hub, a recess to receive a connecting link to thesail or other rigging; and

a locking pin slidable in a hole formed in said hub and engagea-ble inan aligned hole in said hook.

6. The device of claim 5 in which said hub is elliptical incross-section with the long dimension of the hub extending generallyparallel to the longitudinal axis of the frame body whereby the linespliced on said hub will tend to support said frame body in generalalignment with said splice.

7. In a snapshackle for rigging adapted for quick fastening to and quickrelease from the clew of a sail, the combination of a frame;

having at one end a flanged hub adapted to secure to said frame thespliced end of a line;

a hook having a pivoted connection securing it to said frame on the endopposite to said flanged hub,

said hook being bent back upon itself for substantially degrees toprovide a locking portion in line with the said hub,

said locking portion having its free end adapted to engage the exposedface of said flanged hub;

a locking pin slidably mounted in a bore extending through said frame inthe general axial direction of said flanged hub and projecting abovesaid exposed face,

said locking portion end of said hook having a bore aligned with thebore in said frame and adapted to receive said locking pin when in itsprojected position; and

a pull-lever pivoted to the end of said locking pin, said pull-leverlying in a recess in said frame, and being of a length to fulcrum insaid recess as one end is raised to retract said locking pin.

8. In a snapshackle the combination of a body frame, a hook pivotedthereto, and a locking pin slidable in a bore in said frame andengageable in and aligned in said hook; characterized by a flanged hubformed at one end and on one side of said body frame, with a mating faceformed on its unsupported end; and a face on the free end of said hookmated to the like face on said hub; and in which said hub and said hookare at opposite ends of said body frame.

9. The device of claim 8 in which said hub in crosssection is ellipticalin shape, with its long dimension extending lengthwise of said bodyframe, whereby a line spliced to said hub will be held in generalalignment with said body frame.

10. The device of claim 8 in which the end surface of said body frameadjacent said hub and the end surface of the hook adjacent said hubcurve inwardly into substantial contact with the line spliced to saidhub.

11. In a streamlined snapshackle adapted for use on the jib sheet of asailing vessel, the combination of a body frame characterized by aflanged hub at one end and side of said frame;

there being a bore in said hub and connected side frame portion,

a retractable locking pin slidable in said bore,

there being a longitudinal recess in the outer face of said side frameportion in the area Where said bore ends, said recess being formed byupstanding side Walls; a hook mounted in said frame on an axis normal tothe aforementioned bore, said hook being characterized by a face matingwith the unsupported end of said hub, the exposed end of said hook beingtapered inwardly to the general area adjacent the flange on said hub,and said hook having a bore which aligns with the bore in said hub whenits face is mated with the face on said hub; and a locking pinretraction means characterized by a pulllever pivoted to one end of saidlocking pin, and having a recessed body adapted to partially embrace theend of said locking pin whereby the fulcrum end of said pull-lever canbe moved close enough to said locking pin to latch said pin in openposition, said locking pin when in inactive position lying in theaforesaid longitudinal recess in said body frame.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 859,082 7/1907 Kenter 5985967,141 8/1910 Merriman 24-239 XR 967,664 8/1910 Peterson 242651,073,292 9/1913 Shnable 114108 XR 2,760,707 8/ 1956 Anderson 24230.5 XR

WILLIAM FELDMAN, Primary Examiner. D. A. GRIFFIN, Assistant Examiner.

8. IN A SNAPSHACKLE THE COMBINATION OF A BODY FRAME, A HOOK PIVOTEDTHERETO, AND A LOCKING PIN SLIDABLE IN A BORE IN SAID FRAME ANDENGEAGABLE IN AND ALIGNED IN SAID HOOK; CHARACTERIZED BY A FLANGED HUBFORMED AT ONE END AND ON ONE SIDE OF SAID BODY FRAME, WITH A MATING FACEFORMED ON ITS UNSUPPORTED END; A FACE ON SAID HUB; AND IN WHICH SAID HUBAND SAID HOOK ARE AT OPPOSITE ENDS OF SAID BODY FRAME.